Rite Aid In Portsmouth, Manchester To Offer Coronavirus Testing

Portsmouth NH

07 May, 2020

2:53 PM

Description

PORTSMOUTH, NH — A pharmacy chain with locations in New Hampshire will be expanding testing for the new coronavirus, at no charge, to anyone who would like a test, even if they don't exhibit symptoms. Rite Aid announced Thursday that it would be expanding its testing sites to from 35 to 71 across the country Monday — including locations in the Granite State. The expansion is being done in an effort to assist customers in finding out of they are infected with COVID-19. The two locations in New Hampshire are 1390 Lafayette Road in Portsmouth and 1631 Elm Street in Manchester. The company is partnering with Verily and will use its "Baseline COVID-19 Program" to provide screening, scheduling, and the return of results at the testing sites. BioReference Laboratories will provide the testing, Rite Aid said. The goal, the company added, was to flatten the curve through accessible diagnostic testing. "Rite Aid has been at the forefront of helping our nation scale up COVID-19 testing capabilities, and we're proud to announce the addition of 46 new testing sites," said Jim Peters, the chief operating officer of Rite Aid. "Opening testing to asymptomatic individuals, as well as providing more locations using our drive-through window, represent important milestones in our response to the pandemic. We remain grateful for the daily efforts and sacrifices of our front-line associates who make the continued expansion of our testing possible." The company hopes to conduct around 10,000 tests a day. In order to receive a test, customers must preregister online at RiteAid.com to schedule a time slot for testing. After that, customers will be given a self-swap nasal test, that will be overseen by a pharmacist via a drive-thru or parking lot location. The hours for testing will be 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., seven days a week, in parking lot locations, and 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Friday, and weekends 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., at drive-thru windows. Got a news tip? Send it to [email protected]. View videos on Tony Schinella's YouTube channel.